The use of external obturators attached to doors or windows is fairly widespread in the construction industry. An external shutter is positioned between an opening leaf and the outside environment. Obturators in the closed position thus make it possible to ensure thermal and sound insulation as well as a visual barrier through the opening leaf. The closed position of the shutter thus makes it possible to ensure privacy within the living space, to secure the building against intrusion (in particular on the ground floor), to limit heat exchanges in order avoid excessive heating in summer or heat losses in winter, to protect the opening leaf from severe weather or to limit the amount of light inside the living space. On the other hand, obturators in the open position allow sunlight to enter the living space. Among building accessories, obturators are prominent components which allow both the exchange of energy of the building with the outside and the visual or acoustic comfort achieved by the building to be managed dynamically.
A large number of obturators on the market take the form of roller shutters. Roller shutters comprise a collection of opaque slats linked one with another to form a shut-off panel in the closed position. The shut-off panel formed is then located on the outside of the opening leaf. The slats are rolled up around a shaft and are housed in an housing in the open position. The slats are selectively rolled up on a drum in order to open the obturator, or are unrolled from the drum in order to close the obturator. Driving the drum can be done from the inside either manually using a hand crank or electrically by means of a geared motor controlled by the user.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,089,540 describes a roller shutter comprising a shut-off panel driven in rotation by a shaft. The roller shutter is configured such that continuous rotation of the shaft in a same direction of rotation makes it possible successively to deploy the shut-off panel arranged in a first plane, then to retract it from this first plane. The panel can also be deployed in a second plane.
In particular in winter, the user of the roller shutters cannot reap the benefits of both optimum heating from outside light (by keeping the shut-off panel retracted) and at the same time increased privacy and security from intrusion (by keeping the shut-off panel deployed).